Automobile locking device



Dec. 17j, )929. P. c. PNKERTON 1,739,648

AUTOMOBILE LOCKING DEVICE Filed Sept. 29, 1928 nhl "W r Patented Dec.17, 1929 UNITED STATES PATENT ori-ICE PETER C. PINKERTON, OFINDIANAPOLIS, INDIANA AUTOMOBILE LOCKING DEVICE Application lcdSeptember 29, 1928. SerialNo. 309,203.

the driver may be manipulated to turn the igv nition off or on, whichwill simultaneously lock the hood in position or unlock the same.

A further obj ect of the invention is to provide a device of thischaracter having suliicient adjustment to render it capable ofadaptation to various individual makes of automobiles to which it may beapplied and which renders the parts beneath the hood inaccessible andpractically incapable of being jiminied or burglarized to'permitoperation of the machine by an unauthorized person.

A further object of the invention is to provide a commercially.practical standardized construction, which will be easy to apply to anystyle car without changing the structure ,thereof and which not only canbe manufactured and sold to dealers at a very small cost but can also beinstalled at practically negligible cost at the time the car is beingasseinbled at the factory.

This application is filed as a substitute for and to take the place ofmy application No. 115,985, led J une 14, 1926, and lallowed on August17, 1927.

Referring to the Y accompanying drawings which are made a part hereofand on which similar reference characters indicate similar parts,- v lFigure 1 is a fragmentary side elevation of .an automobile with partsbroken away to show the application of my invention; 'u

Figure 2, an enlarged detail 'of a switch having an operating shaftextending through the dash and instrument board;

Figure 3, a section on line 3-'-'-3 of Figure 2;

Figure 4, a section on line 4 4 of Figure 2 Figure 5, a detail of thehood locking mechanism, and

Figure 6, a detail side elevation of the structure shown in Figure 5.

` In the drawings reference character 10 indicates an automobile havinga hood 11, a dash 12 and an instrument board 13. A lock 14, preferablyof the tumbler type having a bolt or shaft 15 adapted to be operated bya key 16, is mounted on the instrument board 13 by means of a ange 17through which screws 18 extend into said instrument board. The forwardend of the bolt 15 extends through the dash 12 and into a casing orhousing 19 secured by screws 22 to the forward face of the dash or onthe opposite side of the dash from the driver, A

sleeve or casing 20 is provided for protecting the locking bolt 15, saidsleeve or casing being preferably heat-treated and of suiiicienthardness to safeguard the same against mutilation by sawing or otherordinary instruments. The forward end of said sleeve 2O is pressed intothe barrel of the lock 14 and a set screw 21 is provided for'assistingin holdng1 the sleeve in fixed relation relative to said oc t.

`The rear end of said sleeve 20 extends'v through a disk` 22 secured byscrews 22 on the front side of the dash from the driver which disk formsaclosure for one end of the housing 19. Said disk 22 is provided with aD-shaped opening 23 and the cylindricaly sleeve 2O is correspondinglymachined at 20 in order to prevent relative rotation between the sleeveand the disk. A plurality of screws or other appropriate fasteningelements 24 extend through the housing into the disk iii:

spaced relation around the same for securing said disk within thehousing.

The housing 19 is provided with an intermediate web 25 havingv aperforation 26 through its center through which perfora-` tion the endof the lo'ck bolt 15 extends said web forming a` forward compartment 27and a rear compartment 28 in-which are disposed the mechanism for makingand' breaking the ignition circuit and that for actuating the ico i 4cAby said bolt. The insulated disk is provided with a bridge plate 33counter-sunk in one face thereof and adapted to engage the free ends ofthe contacts 29 and bridge the same to complete the electric circuit. Alever 34 having an opening 35 therethrough corresponding to the crosssectionof the bolt 15 is mounted on said bolt within thecompartment 27and in order to hold said lever in position I provide a disk36 andthread thesame` onto the end of the bolt 15 and lock the same inposition by means of a locknut 37, though obviously instead of the disk36, which in itself performs the function ofa nut, acommon nut may beprovided.

The lever 34 is slotted or bifurcated at 38, the inner extremity of eachslot being curved to formy a cam 39. The bifurcated'arms of the leverare also provided with curved slots 40 for the reception of a pin 4lhaving attachedV thereto the inner end of an operating wire or flexibleconnection 42 which carries a plunger or locking bolt'43 at its forwardend for locking the hood in position. rlhe lever 34 is formedthe same ateachend for connection with similar wires 42, the @am surfaces 39-preventing the wires freni bending too sharply andl breaking. The casing19 has a threaded nipple 44 preferably formed integral therewithvadapted for the reception of a nut 45 onthe endfof a pipe 46 of whitemetal or' other inexpensive I'netalof'ay rigid nature, said pipe 46extending-downwardly and along the frame member or chassis 47 and Vsecured thereto by means of-v clamps 48, said pipes 46 forming a casingfor-the flexible wire A fastening element 49 is spot welded in verticalposition to the side of the hood l1, said fastening element beingsubstantially L- shaped with its broader portion extending outwardly andits narrower portion cut away adjacent its lowerend to provide a tongue'slotted' at 49"for-the reception of the locktact plates 29 andat the`sametim'ethe; leverv v34is rotated toretract the=flexiblefwires 42.

and the locking boltsl ory plungers- 43 from the (zo-operating locking'elementsk on the hood". A

Thelock'shait issecurely heldin the end .oftheflock'byf means of alocking-screw and .the casing.thatvsurroundsthe-shaft is lockedleetlrtok loclgandto the-switch Yhousing which prevents the casing andlock being rotated to operate the switch by means of a Stillson wrenchor the like, said shaft being made separately in order to permit highspeed production.

The switch may be substituted for the usual ignition switch or maybeanrauxfiliary switch placedV inthe ignition circuit vpreferably betweenthe ammeter and the coil. Also the other partsv are so constructed thatthey are individuallyv Yremovable in case it becomesnecessaryto-.replace the same for any reason.

In assembling a large number of "wellknown automabilesitgwas notedthatpractically no two were provided with hood clamps in the same locationand my adjustable locking mechanism is designed to account for anyvariation.. 1

It will be understood that ina device ofv this 'character it will bepractically impossible.

for an unauthorized personfto gain accessV to the wiring system or partsof the mote-r beneath the hood to render the machine capable of beingoperated.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that variousV changes maybeinade in my devicewith'out departing from the spirit of the inventionand thereforeI do notv limit myself to what is shown in the drawings-anddescribed in the specific-ation but only asindicated infthe appendedclaims. f

Having thusV fullyv vdescribed my said invention, what' 'I claim as newand desire to secure by LettersP-atent, is:

l. The combinationin an automobileofa hood, a lock having a shaft"extendingl beneath said hood, a casing for said shaft, a

switch casing beneath the hood; adapted to 'be secured in fixedposition, a bridge piece carried by said lock shaft` rotatable therewithfor completing the `ignition circuit, ya lever alsocarried bysaidshaft,pipes rigidly mounted at the sides ofi the casing and eX- tendingdownwardlyandi forwardly along the frame, a bracket secured to said hoodadjacent each side thereof, flexible wires connected with thelever onthelock shaft at one endand` havingtheir opposite ends provided withlocking plungers adapted to engage the brackets on the hood for-securingsaid hood in closedposition said bracket'havinga plate adjustably'carried thereby.` kand 'havingv an opening ytherethroughfor thereception of saidilockingfplungers whereby the device may be applied tovariousf types of automobiles without modification ofthe hoodVstructure, substantially-as set forth.

v2: A lockin kdevice for automobiles comprising a switc housing mounted:ont the-.dash

vbeneath' thehood, ay movable; switch element ico end connected to theswitch housing, said switch housing and lock being non-rotatably mountedrelative to said casing, pipes extending from said switch laterally andforwardly along the frame and terminating in close proximity to thelower edge of the hood, a locking element adjustably mounted on saidhood, and flexible elements secured to the movable element of the switchand extending through said pipes for movement into engagement with saidlocking elements for securing the hood in position, substantially as setforth.

3. The combination with an automobile of a switch mounted beneath thehood,l a shaft extending' through said switch, locking means forrotating said shaft, a disk of insulating material non-rotatably mountedon said shaft, a bridge-piece carried by said disk, said bridge-pieceforming a movable element of the switch, an elongated bar having acentral perforation through which said shaft extends said bar havingslots in its arms on op'- posite sides of the central perforatio-ns,pins disposed in said slots, locking elements having their inner endsdisposed around said pins and having their outer ends disposed withoutthe switch, said pins being adapted to slide in said slots and projectand retract said locking elements when the shaft is oscillated,substantially as set forth.

4. An automobile ignition and hood locking device comprising a switchhousing mounted on the dash beneath the hood, a movable switch elementin said housing, a lockmounted on the instrument board and having a.shaft extending into and connected with the movable element of theswitch, a casing for said shaft having one end fixed to said lock andhaving its other end fixed to the switch housing, locking elementsadjustably connected to the side of the hood, and flexible elementsconnected to the movable element of the switch extending longitudinallyof the frame and arranged to yenga-ge said locking elements for lockingthe hood in closed position whereby when the key on theinst-rument boardis turned to break the ignition circuit said flexible elements will bemoved into engagement with the locking elements to lock the hood inclosed position, substantially as set forth.

5.- The combination with an automobile of a switch casing mountedbeneath the hood, a lock secured in position with a key-way exposed atthe front of the instrument board, a shaft fixed to said lock andextending into said switch casing, a hardened tube nonrotatablyconnecting said switch casing and saidv lock, a pair of flexible contactmembers in said switch casing, a disk rotatably mounted in said casingand having a bridge piece for completing the circuit across saidflexible contact members, a bar fixed on the end of Said rod, flexiblewires secured to said bar,

locking plungers at the outer ends of said flexible wires, and lockingelements mounted on said hood adapted to be engaged by said lockingplungers, substantially as set forth.

G. In an automobile the combination of a locking bolt extending from theinstrument board through the dash, a lock mounted on theginstrumentboard and adapted to receive a key for rotating said locking bolt,aeasing for protecting said locking bolt said casing being fixed to saidlock secured in the instrument board and having its forward end providedwith a connection to the dash beneath the hood, a disk of insulatingmaterial non-rotatably mounted on said locking rod forwardly of thedash, a bridge-piece carried by said disk, a casing for said disk ofinsulating material comprising a body open at each end and having anintermediate web perforated for the reception of said locking bolt, apair of spring fingers mounted on said web and bearing against saidinsulated disk whereby when the locking bolt is rotated the bridge-piecewill bridge said spring fingers, Y

a bar secured on the forward end of said locking rod on the oppositeside of the web from said spring fingers, openings in said casingadjacent said bar, locking elements on said hood, and flexible elementsconnected to the extremities of said bar and extending through theopenings in the casing to position to engage the locking elements forthe hood whereby when the locking shaft is rotated the circuit will becompleted across said spring fingers and the bar will be operated toreciprocate the flexible elements longitudinally into locking engagementwith the locking elements on the hood, substantially as set forth.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand at Indianapolis,Indiana, this 27th day of September, A. D. nineteen hundred andtwenty-eight.

PETER C. PINKERTON.

